What is the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform?

How do you describe what the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform is in a few words? It’s not an easy task, but think about your Android or iOS enabled phone – this is a platform for running apps. On your phone, some data, such as contacts or appointment information or addresses are shared between apps. The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform behaves in a similar way with a few key differences:

The Platform is the place to define your product

All data on the platform is up to date and shared between applications

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform is a pure web-based interface with a consistent look and behavior between all apps designed for enhanced simplicity and reduced learning curves

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform is not your traditional PLM or PDM system, it is the next generation of data management. Whereas traditional PLM/PDM systems manage revisions of files, the Platform manages data. Think of this as the difference between an electronic PDF file-based boarding pass and the new boarding passes you can get on your phone through an app. The phone-based boarding pass always updates as flight information changes whereas the PDF is a static file that never gets updated. Likewise, the data stored on the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform is always being updated guaranteeing that all stakeholders have the most up-to-date view and status of the product and associated projects.

What Can I Do with the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform?

As with your phones operating system, there are many apps available on the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform. On the Platform, apps are role-based, meaning that depending upon your role in the organization you will see apps that provide you with the functionality you require to do your job.

While the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform covers a vast range of business processes from product conception through retirement, we’ll simplify it a little here by looking at a few of the more common processes.

Engineering Data Management

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform provides deep integrations into most legacy CAD systems. With the new POWER’BY capabilities, regardless of CAD data source, all data is stored on the platform and can be loaded in the same session thereby eliminating the need for translations to neutral formats. In fact, POWER’BY provides a unique capability to load CAD data from other systems into your CATIA V5, CATIA 3DEXPERIENCE or SOLIDWORKS sessions enabling design-in-context scenarios.

Almost all legacy systems differentiate between different Bills or materials, i.e. EBOM, MBOM, SBOM, etc. Generally, different data structures are created which require constant synchronization between structures as files and data get updated.

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform uses a very different approach – it has a single structure that contains an Engineering Item. The Engineering Item contains your physical (CAD) data, your engineering definition including reference documentation, your Manufacturing definition and any other definition that you require. There is no complex synchronization required and a view of the correct definition is provided based upon your role.

This guarantees that all the data is in sync and up-to-date regardless if you’re working on a design or on the manufacturing definition of the product.

Business Processes Modeling

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform enables an organization to not only model and simulates the products, but to also model all business processes within the organization. In fact, with the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform, everything can be modeled.

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform is highly customizable, even with the On-cloud option. Business types can be created, and customized life cycles and rules associated with the business object. In addition to regular life cycle stages, approval processes and workflows can be added. With a flexible and easy to use workflow editor, document and data can be routed through a customized workflow.

Document Management

With robust search capabilities, the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform enables users to find documents based upon the standard of customized attributes. Documents regardless of format can be classified and managed in libraries.

Specific review and approval processes can be set up to manage the release and retirement of documents. Security and access rights is always a concern; with the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform, it is easy to view assigned access rights and manage those assignments in one simple to use interface.

Project and Program Management

The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform brings the work to the worker through Collaborative tasks that are exposed on the Platform as well as inside your CAD application. With an easy to understand interface; all required information is provided to the user.

Obviously, tasks generally roll up to projects, regardless of whether the assignee sees the project or not. The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform provides some very unique capabilities that cannot be found in most other Project Management solutions. Task deliverables can be tracked at the project and program level. The release status of the deliverable has a direct effect on the completion status of the tasks and the project phases. This is called “Deliverables-Based Project Management” and is enabled by the invisible governance of the project.

Through powerful dashboards, project managers have an accurate view of all task status, deliverables and possible issues reported against the project. They can accurately report on project on-time status and budget.

In addition, the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform provides Team-Based Project Management where tasks are defined and assigned at the team level. In many cases these sub-projects roll-up to higher level projects and programs. With real-time updating, the project timeline is always up-to-date and accurate.

How Does The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform Help Me?

With increasing product complexity comes an increased amount of product-related data that needs to be managed efficiently. Non-value-added activities such as searching for the correct data occupy engineer’s time, and mistakes are made by referencing out-of-date versions. Whether you’re a supplier working for an OEM or you have suppliers working for you, secure access and accurate timely information exchange are critical to your success.

With intelligent business modeling and planning, The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform connects all project information and stakeholders across the extended enterprise. Organizations can better understand and optimize business processes, accelerating their time to market.

Intelligent planning brings massive amounts of information to the user in the correct context and in an assisted way to maximize business benefits, reduce risks and costs while accelerating delivery to market.

About Gideon Paull

Gideon has over 25 years of international business, technical and industry experience in engineering, software product development, data management, implementation services and management. He holds degrees in agricultural engineering, mechanical engineering and is an avid programmer in multiple languages.

Gideon recently joined Hawk Ridge Systems from Dassault Systemes where he had been involved in the definition and user experience around the 3DEXEPIENCE Platform. In that role he also developed best practices for common engineering use cases that take advantage of the power of the Platform.

At Hawk Ride Systems Gideon is responsible for promoting and educating around The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform and ENOVIA; both internally and to Hawk Ridge’s customer base.